EAST PRAIRIE, Mo. — Randel J. Blankenship of East Prairie passed away Sept. 21, 2025, at Missouri Delta Community Hospital. Born March 17, 1930, in Monette, Arkansas, to the late Claude E. and Mabel Randel Blankenship. He graduated from Arkansas State University in 1956 with a Bachelor of Science in education and earned a master’s degree in education from Memphis State University. A committal service with full military honors will follow at 1 p.m. Friday at the Missouri State Veterans Cemetery in Bloomfield.